This invention relates to door locking systems, and more particularly, to a lock assembly for use in slidable doors and the like.
Slidable doors and particularly transparent slidable doors are very useful in a variety of environments, such as to provide a readily accessible and removable "see-through" closure between the family room or other room of a house or apartment and an outside patio, swimming pool, yard or balcony. The "transparent" characteristics of transparent slidable doors generally permit residents of the household to comfortably sit in their family room and watch their children play on their patio or in their swimming pool and generally observe whatever is happening outside that portion of the house. The transparent characteristics of such doors also permit the residents of the house to comfortably sit or work in their back yard or balcony and observe their children or whatever else is happening in the family room.
The "slidable" feature of such door units permit sliding of the doors from a closed position to an open position, usually with minimal effort, to provide easy ingress and egress between the family room and yard or balcony. The slidable doors can also be partially opened to allow circulation and passage of air through the screen door or opening of the door unit into the house.
Very often such slidable door units are equipped with conventional latching mechanisms which can often be easily pried open or jarred by intruders when the residents of the household are away. Furthermore, such conventional latching mechanisms typically do not permit the slidable door to be securely locked when the slidable door is partially opened which would desirably allow circulation and passage of air into the house through the door units when the residents of the household are away from home.
It is therefore very desirable to provide a lock assembly for sliding doors and the like which obviates the above disadvantages and which is substantially safe, secure and tamper-proof.